Spring contact



March 15, 1966- J. KAHL spams CONTACT Original Filed May 9, 1963 FIG.

FIG. 2

INVENTOR. j m 0A Adm United States Patent O 3,240,864 SPRING CONTACT Joseph Kalil, 14 Horatio St., New York, N.Y. Originai application May 9, 1963, Ser. No. 279,177. Divided and this appiication Nov. 12, 1963, Ser. No.

6 Claims. (Cl. 17452) The present application is a divisional application of pending application Serial Number 279,177, filed May 9, 1963, and entitled Portable Motor-Aspirated Psychrometer.

The present invention relates to a spring contact. More particularly, the invention relates to an electrically conductive spring contact.

The principal object of the present invention is to provide a new and improved electrically conductive spring contact.

An object of the present invention is to provide an electrically conductive spring contact which is self-adaptable for use with different sizes of electrical components.

Another object of the present invention is to provide an electrically conductive spring contact which is effective, efiicient and reliable in operation.

In order that the present invention may be readily carried into effect, it will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawing, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an embodiment of the spring contact of the present invention; and

FIG. 2 is a side View of the embodiment of FIG. 1, positioned in an operational environment including guides for the spring contact and electrical components electrically connected by the spring contact.

In the figures, the same components are identified by the same reference numerals.

The spring contact 11 comprises two strip-like sheets of conductive material such as, for example, copper and a sheet of insulating material such as, for example, insulating plastic tape. The two sheets of conductive material are positioned in side by side relation by the insulating material 12. A sheet 13 of electrically conductive material is shaped in substantially S configuration with the insulating material 12. The sheet 13 is thus formed with a top portion 14, a stem or leg portion 15 and a bottom or base portion formed by the insulating material 12. The other sheet 16 of electrically conductive material is shaped in substantially U configuration with the electrically insulating material 12. The sheet 16 is thus formed with a first leg portion 17 comprising the insulating material 12 and a part 18 of conductive material bent at an obtuse angle with the insulating material, a second leg portion 19 comprising three parts 21, 22 and 23 bent at obtuse angles with each other and a head portion 24 joining the first and second leg portions.

The conductive sheets 13 and 16 of the spring contact 11 are resilient and maintain contact between the electrical contact of an electrical component such as, for example, a battery 25, and the electrical contacts 26 of another electrical component such as, for example, a motor 27. Only one of the motor contacts is shown in the figures. The spring contact 11 may be positioned in a housing having a longitudinal divider or rib 28 and a lateral divider or rib 29. The first or longitudinal divider 28 extends longitudinally along the inside of the housing and the second or lateral divider 29 extends laterally along the inside of the housing transversely to the first divider 28. Another lateral rib or divider 31 may extend laterally along the inside of the housing.

The lateral divider 31 may have a wire passage 32 formed therethrough. The upper end of the lateral divider 29 is spaced from the longitudinal divider 28 to provide a passage 33 between said longitudinal divider and the end of said lateral divider. The longitudinal and lateral dividers 28 and 29 form in the housing a first compartment for an electrical component such as, for example, the battery 25 and the lateral divider forms in the housing a second compartment for another electrical component such as, for example, the motor 27. The lateral divider 29 and the passage 33 are thus common to the first and second electrical component compartments.

The spring contact 11 may be positioned in the housing in the manner shown in FIG. 2 with the lateral divider 29 in the area formed by the first and second leg portions 17 and 19 of the conductive sheet 16 and with the head portion 24 of the conductive sheet 16 in the passage 33. The lateral divider 29 prevents the spring contact 11 from shifting in the longitudinal direction and the longitudinal divider 28 prevents said spring contact from shifting in the lateral direction. Thus, due to its resiliency and is position with the lateral and longitudinal dividers 29 and 28, respectively, the spring contact 11 maintains electrical contact between the battery 25 and the motor 27 The spring contact 11 maintains direct electrical contact between the battery 25 and the motor 27 without the need for soldered connections. The lateral divider 29 so positions the spring contact 11 that if the baitery 25 shifts longitudinally and exerts pressure on said spring contact the said spring contact maintains electrical contact with the motor contacts 26. The spring contact abuts resiliently With a first resilient contact part 16 a first contact 25 and one side of lateral divider 29 and with its second resilient contact part 15 one contact 26 and the other side of divider 29. A third contact part 18 resiliently abuts the other of the second contacts 26 and the other side of divider 29. The motor contacts 26 are spaced from each other. One motor contact 26 contacts the conductive sheet 13 and the other motor contact 26 contacts the conductive sheet 16. Since the conductive sheets 13 and 16 of the spring contact 11 are insulated from each other by the insulator 12, the motor 27 may be suitably placed in circuit with the battery 25 via electrical conductors 34 and 35 and return conductors (not shown in the figures) to the other terminal of the battery. One motor contact makes electrical contact with the stem portion 15 of the sheet 13 and the other motor contact makes electrical contact with the part 18 of the sheet 16. The second leg portion 19 of the conductive sheet 16 maintains electrical contact with the battery 25.

A hole 36 is formed through the top portion 14 of the sheet 13 and a hole 37 is formed through the head portion 24 of the sheet 16. The electrical conductor 34 may be soldered to the conductive sheet 16 of the spring contact 11 at the hole 37 and the electrical conductor 35 may be soldered to the conductive sheet 13 of the spring contact at the hole 36.

While the invention has been described by means of a specific example and in a specific embodiment, I do not wish to be limited thereto, for obvious modifications will occur to those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.

What I claim is:

1. A self tensioning motor contact spring comprising, in combination, housing means including internal divider means dividing said housing means into a first compartment and a second compartment; a first contact located in said first compartment; a pair of second contacts located in said second compartment spaced from said divider means; and contact means including a first resilient contact part located in said first compartment and resiliently abutting said first contact and one side of said divider means, a second contact part and a third contact part located in said second compartment resiliently abutting the other side of said divider means and said second contacts, respectively, for holding said contact means in said housing, and insulating means between said second and said third contact parts, said first resilient contact part being electrically connected with one of said pair of second contacts.

2. A contact spring as set forth in claim 1, comprising means connected to said first contact part to connect said first contact part into a circuit.

3. A contact spring as set forth in claim 1, comprising means connected to said second contact part to connect said second contact part into a circuit.

4. A contact spring as set forth in claim 1, comprising means connected to said third contact part to connect said third contact part into a circuit.

5. A contact spring as set forth in claim 1, wherein said insulating means between said second and third contact parts is a sheet-like member connected to said second and third contact parts at an obtuse angle and abutting the other side of said divider in the region of the apex of said angle.

6. An electrical contact arrangement comprising in combination a housing having a first divider extending substantially longitudinally along the inside of said housing and a second divider extending substantially transversely to said first divider along the inside of said housing, said second divider ending at a point spaced from said first divider to form inside of said housing a passage, said first and second dividers forming in said housing a first compartment and said second divider forming in said housing a second compartment, said passage being common to said first and second compartments; a first elechaving a pair of spaced electrical contacts positioned in said first compartment; a second electrical component having a pair of spaced electrical contacts positioned in said second compartment; and a self-tensioning contact spring adapted to provide continuous electrical connection between said contact of said first electrical component in said first compartment and one of the pair of electrical contacts of said second electrical component in said second compartment, said contact spring comprising one sheet-like member located in said second compartment having an non-conductive base portion disposed between said second divider and said second component, and a conductive leg portion contacting the other of the pair of electrical contacts, said leg portion being connected to said base portion and bent relative to said base portion at an obtuse angle, another sheet-like member having a conductive first leg portion connected to said base portion and bent at an obtuse angle relative to said base portion, said leg portions and said base portion being disposed within said second compartment, said first leg portion contacting the one of the said pair of contacts of the second electrical component, a second conductive leg portion comprising three sections bent at an obtuse angle with each other, one of said sections contacting the contact of said first electrical component, said sections being disposed in said first compartment, and a head portion disposed between the first and second compartment in said passage holding said first and second leg portion spaced from each other and said second leg portion spaced from said base portion, said sheet-like members being adapted to be loosely accommodated in said housing, said dividers permitting movement of the contact spring in the housing within predetermined limits.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,064,290 12/1936 Campbell et al. 24872 2,408,843 10/1946 Gauthier 339-14 X 2,872,503 2/1959 Winter 174-51 2,883,587 4/1959 Dorfman et al 317-119 2,890,436 6/1959 Bentley 339- X 3,118,714 1/1964 Ludwig 17453 3,148,927 9/1964 Winter 339-14 3,171,888 3/1965 Stanback 17472 ROBERT K. SCHAEFER, Primary Examiner.

JOHN F. BURNS, Examiner.

W. B. FREDERICKS, Assistant Examiner. 

1. A SELF TENSIONING MOTOR CONTACT SPRING COMPRISING, IN COMBINATION, HOUSING MEANS INCLUDING INTERNAL DIVIDER MEANS DIVIDING SAID HOUSING MEANS INTO A FIRST COMPARTMENT AND A SECOND COMPARTMENT; A FIRST CONTACT LOCATED IN SAID FIRST COMPARTMENT; A PAIR OF SECOND CONTACTS LOCATED IN SAID SECOND COMPARTMENT SPACED FROM SAID DIVIDER MEANS; AND CONTACT MEANS INCLUDING A FIRST RESILIENT CONTACT PART LOCATED IN SAID FIRST COMPARTMENT AND RESILIENTLY ABUTTING SAID FIRST CONTACT AND ONE SIDE OF SAID DIVIDER MEANS, A SECOND CONTACT PART AND A THIRD CONTACT PART LOCATED IN SAID SECOND COMPARTMENT RESILIENTLY ABUTTING THE OTHER SIDE OF SAID DIVIDER MEANS AND SAID SECOND CONTACTS, RESPECTIVELY, FOR HOLDING SAID CONTACT MEANS IN SAID HOUSING, AND INSULATING MEANS BETWEEN SAID SECOND AND SAID THIRD CONTACT PARTS, SAID FIRST RESILIENT CONTACT PART BEING ELECTRICALLY CONNECTED WITH ONE OF SAID PAIR OF SECOND CONTACTS. 